Pickleball Balls - Indoor & Outdoor Pickleball Balls

Pickleball balls will shortly become your new best friend.  Since you're one of the many outgoing and smart people across the country picking up pickleball as a pastime and maybe even for the exercise, then you know pickleball is growing in popularity and so is the controversy surrounding pickleball balls.

Pickleball Balls - Light Fast Spin or Heavy Slow Bounce?

There are outdoor balls, indoor balls, and balls of every color of the rainbow. There are different composite balls, some are soft some are hard, some bounce some don’t. Even though the dimensions of the ball are the same there is no one standard ball like in most other sports. Players may have a preference for a ball based on their style of play.

Younger players like the lighter faster balls that can produce more spin, while older players may like the softer heavier balls that produce more bounce. Until the sport of pickleball evolves to a point that one ball becomes the standard for all levels of play, you will need to decide for yourself which ball is best for you and the group that you play with on a regular basis.

Pickleball Balls - What To Consider

• Pickleball Ball Speed: Lighter Faster and More Spin

• Pickleball Ball Weight: Heavier Slower and More Bounce

• Pickleball Color

• Indoor Pickleball Ball v. Outdoor Pickleball Ball

The basic difference between outdoor balls and indoor balls is that balls designed for outside are heavier with harder plastic and smaller holes. These features allow for increased durability, wind resistance, and bounce. In contrast, indoor balls have softer and lighter plastic with larger holes to provide more accurate shots and a better bounce on indoor surfaces.

Pickleball Balls Advice

My personal take on pickleball balls is that the USAPA should consider selecting approved balls for social and tournament play based on age. Younger players should play a ball that moves more and doesn’t bounce as high, as they can get to everything. I play with a lot of older players and we prefer the softer more resilient ball like the ONIX Fuse. The reason for this is the harder balls do not bounce, and they spin low and away which has caused some accidents and injuries to older players when they try to lurch for the ball. We older players simply cannot bend down or move fast without possible physical injury. Something to consider when selecting a ball.

Pickleball should be no prob-llama!  Welcome to Volley Llama Pickleball.